Last weekend's Ford Championship at the famed Doral Golf Resort proved that in the world of golf, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
I'd give you two guesses as to who won the tournament, but you'd only need one. Yes, Tiger Woods finished atop the field again. He has competed in five events this year and won three of them. He has already amassed over two million dollars in earnings for nearly two months of work.
Remember when Vijay Singh overtook Tiger in the world golf rankings some time ago? Well, Tiger responded by winning two major tournaments and was named Player of the Year in 2005. Now, it's not even close. Vijay's ranking number at two in the world is 8.93, Tiger's is 16.89. The days of the "Big Five" in the PGA are gone. Now, once again, it's the Big One.
Despite his success, however, some critics are looking not at how often, but at how Tiger has been winning. Recently, he has been grinding out close victories and he has benefited from errors by his competitors. Furthermore, his play has been more inconsistent, as evidenced by the first and second rounds at the World Golf Match Play Championship, where he drubbed Stephen Ames with a near-flawless round before needing a final-hole birdie to defeat Robert Allenby.
These asinine observations indicate the double standard against which all great athletes are set. If another golfer were to struggle, but hold on to victory, we would call him gritty and admire his perseverance. Tiger is expected to cruise. We hope that someone can play up to his level and challenge him, but when it happens the other way, when Tiger plays down to the level of everyone else, we wonder what's wrong. These critics are attempting to put an asterisk next to his dominance.
To me, this new round of Tiger-control is almost more impressive. There's no doubt that his competition has worked hard and improved, and that he's not the only one with insane distance these days. Also, everyone on the Tour claims that his aura has diminished, that they no longer fear the one clad in Nike. His days of 15-stroke victories at the US Open (see also: Pebble Beach, 2000) are gone, but in my book, a win's a win.
Last Sunday, Tiger was spraying his drives all over, hitting everything besides the fairway, but the only green he missed was the 18th. Even when part of his repertoire is missing, he can make up for it, and do so well enough to win. That's why he's the best.
From about 1999 to 2002, Tiger delivered a knockout blow to the rest of the PGA Tour. This time around, he had to pick himself off the canvas and tend to the wounds of his "slump" before knocking everyone out again. That's why he's a champion.
While the name on the top of the leaderboard may be the same, there have been some changes a little further down. As Tiger has moved into his thirties, there's been a noted absence of young challengers to his throne. Every sport loves to look for the "next great." This year, golf may have found some potential candidates.
(By the way, the fact that Tiger is over 30 years old completely freaks me out. I distinctly remember watching him in the US Amateur Championships while he was still in college, before his maroon Stanford hat would be replaced by a black Nike one. Clearly, I'm getting old, although I already knew that because I like watching golf on TV).
Anyway, the name on the leaderboard that has fans looking toward the future is rookie Camilo Villegas from Columbia. His final-round 67 put him in a tie for second place, giving him two runner-up finishes on the young season. Villegas is a popular fan-favorite who plays with flair, reminiscent of Sergio Garcia, but with a less fiery course demeanor.
Villegas is not the only rookie making headlines. He is joined by promising golfers Bubba Watson and J.B. Holmes. Watson has a third and fourth place finish thus far, and Holmes earned attention by winning the FBR Open a month ago.
Many young golfers plug away for years, sometimes losing their PGA Tour card before coming back to have success. Some play the best golf of their lives one weekend to break onto the scene (think Ben Curtis at the 2003 British Open). Not these guys. They are not intimidated, and are playing consistently and surprisingly well. Holmes is ninth on the 2006 money list, Villegas is 14th, and Watson is 30th.
The one commonality between these three rooks is their ridiculous distance. Watson is first in driving distance with an average of 320 yards, Holmes is second (313), and Villegas is fifth (306). Once these boys refine the rest of their games, their scores should go down, and their bank accounts should go up.
Until then, however, they will just remain hopefuls. While these rookie bombers have brought excitement and some bold prognostications to golf, it's still Tiger's Tour, and you know how hard it is to beat him.
